The Predator [1] Read online

  “Night.” I hang up and stare at the ceiling with my phone to my chest. “I’m finally someone’s girlfriend!” I’m giddy. Sure, I was ‘with’ Timothy, but I was never referred to as anything to him. I place my phone on my side table and do my best to try to sleep, but images of Chamberlain showering plague me. How the water cascades down his rippled abs and over his heavily corded thighs. I’ve never seen a penis before, only in anatomy, but I’m sure he is huge. He has to be, in relative size to the rest of him.

  The pressure between my legs becomes unbearable. I squeeze my legs together to try to rid it, but it doesn’t hinder it. Rubbing them together only makes them worse. Finally, I’m able to settle just enough to close my eyes and ease into my dreams.

  Chapter Ten

  I HAVE NEVER been one to fuss over what I wear, but tonight, when I was getting ready, I went through several outfits to find the right one. I know I’ve already impressed Chamberlain, but I wanted to look nice for him.

  I settled on a pair of worn jeans and white, short sleeve, round neck, loose fitted long top. It was simple but classy for my style. I kept my hair down, which stops just above my shoulder blades, and wear my usual amount of minimal makeup. I felt great walking out the door to meet Chamberlain for our pizza date.

  Fiona had agreed as well when she rushed me out the door before serving my mother and sister their dinner.

  “Stop laughing at me.” I pout as I try to get some of the grease off my pizza. I’ve never seen a piece this big or this greasy before. It will be enough calories to keep me going for a few days. I almost feel bad eating it. Almost. It is also the best tasting pizza I have ever had.

  When I pulled up, I looked everywhere for Chamberlain’s rusted car and was almost on the brink of tears when I waited and didn’t see it. I was just about to start my car and leave when he came walking out of a building.

  He explained that he lived there when he opened my door and led me into the pizzeria.

  “I’m sorry.” He wipes one of his eyes.

  I didn’t know he found it this funny.

  “I’m not meaning to, Katie, but how the hell have you never had pizza at a pizza joint before?”

  I pick up my pizza and have to fold it over just to take a small bite. “We never ate out unless it had four or more stars.” I take a bite. The juices ooze all over in my mouth, earning a moan to rumble in my throat.

  So much better than homemade.

  “I’m glad I can be your first.” The low growl fills me with a need that I’m growing accustomed to.

  My pizza stops halfway to my mouth when I look at him again. His eyes are dark, so dark they are almost black, and focused on my mouth.

  This reaction to him can’t be normal.

  “Tell me about your parents.” I set my pizza back down and lean forward in my seat, offering him my sweetest smile. I need to keep our date from becoming too much. I’m not ready to handle that yet.

  The seductive look drops from his face, and he falls back in his seat. I didn’t mean to shut him down completely; I just want to know more about him.

  “What would you like to know?”

  “Everything.” I shrug. “What kind of people were they? How were they as parents? All that.”

  “They were like normal parents …”

  “I don’t know how normal parents are, Chamberlain. Remember, my parents hate me.”

  He shakes his head and crosses his arms as if he doesn’t understand how it is for me. I would show him if I weren’t so scared of them chasing him off.

  “I just don’t get how they can hate you. It’s impossible not to love you.” I duck my head to hide the blush and shocked expression that springs to my face. He used the word ‘love’ and we don’t even …

  “Hey, don’t do that. It’s the truth. You’re a sweetheart, Katie. Get whatever they put in your head out and replace it with what I say.”

  Yet you barely know me.

  “I’ll try,” I whisper and pick up my fork. I’m going to have better luck eating this with a utensil. “So your dad?” I turn the focus back on him.

  He laughs. “You’re a shit, but I’ll let you win this one.” He takes a bite of his own food. I have a feeling it is a rare moment that he lets someone win. I wait and fixate on him as he eats. His lips pout a little more and a frown line forms when he’s chewing.

  Hello, creepy K.C.

  I’ve also notice he has a dimple that pops out, but only when he is really smiling.

  “His name was Rocky,” he starts. Chamberlain covers his mouth like he is getting choked up.

  “If it’s too hard-”

  “No, I want to tell you.” He cuts me off. “Just give me a sec.” He takes a deep breath and puts his almost finished pizza down. “He was a firefighter here in Boston and was an only child like me. My grandparents were gone by the time I was ten, so I have few memories of them. My dad told me once that the moment he met my mom the world stopped moving. He couldn’t breathe, and a glow around her pulled him in. He told me to find that, and I would be set for life.”

  “How sweet.” I sigh.

  “He taught me everything …” He waves his arms around. “How to be kind to others and help out when someone is in need. I had started doing charity work and community service with him as soon as I was old enough to go. I always wanted to be just like him.” He stares off at something behind me, but I can tell he is lost in the past. “I wasn’t like most boys my age back then. Mainly because I wasn’t grossed out by my parents’ love for each other. I admired it.”

  I’m envious of the love he saw between his parents and the kindness they taught him. To think of what I would have turned out like without Fiona? I would have been just as bad as my sister is.

  “Fighting was a hobby of his, and he taught me the basics when I was really young. I got my first pair of boxing gloves for my fifth birthday. I still have them.”

  “That’s why you want to be a fighter? Your dad?” I cock my head to the side, and my hair tickles my bare shoulder. “Why not a firefighter?”

  Chamberlain looks down at the table and starts to play with the straw in his glass. “He was fighting a fire at an old apartment building when they were informed a little boy, maybe three, was still inside. My dad, being the guy he was, rushed in to get him. The building …” He coughs, and I almost want to beg him to stop. I don’t want to see him cry. “… was starting to collapse. He managed to shove the boy out before the beams gave. My dad was trapped inside, and the flames got out of control …”

  “Oh, Chamberlain …”

  “I never wanted to be a firefighter because I never wanted my loved ones to go through the grief of losing me like my mom and I did with my dad. He was and still is a hero to me, but I could never be brave enough to be in that line of work. Besides …” He looks up at me with a watery smile. “Fighting suits me better.”

  I nod. It’s so sad. I can’t even imagine. Why do things like that happen to good people? Chamberlain had parents who actually loved him, and they were taken away. My parents …”

  “My mom was an amazing lady.” Chamberlain pulls me from my wandering thoughts. “Her name was Marissa.”

  That’s a pretty name. Rocky and Marissa are unique just like their son.

  “She worked at the diner we ate at the other day. She was also an only child; she was orphaned young like me. She was put into the foster system and that’s how she met my dad. His older cousin and wife had taken my mom in.” He takes another calming breath. This has to be hard for him. “She was sweet, kind, loving, and scary as hell for a tiny woman when I got into trouble. She also made the best oatmeal cookies.”

  “She sounds wonderful, Chamberlain.” I tentatively place my hand on top of his as he picks up his napkin. His eyes lock with mine, and I offer him a smile. One he returns.

  “She fell into a depression after my dad died; she just barely stayed afloat for a long time. If she didn’t have me, I can’t imagine what would have happened to
her. She finally started to come back to herself when she started to get sick. It took us a while, but we finally learned that she had cancer, a blood cancer. It was leukemia, and nothing could really be done by the time it was discovered.”

  My eyes start to burn with tears - not just for Marissa, but for Chamberlain as well. It must have been horrible knowing there was nothing he could do.

  “We had money from my dad’s life insurance, but she …” His voice breaks as he lets out a laugh that has zero humor to it. “She insisted on saving it for my future. She died six months after they diagnosed her.”

  My need to comfort him grips me. I get up and round the table to settle on his lap and hold him to me. “I’m so sorry I put you in this mood by asking,” I whisper into his short hair as his head rests on my chest. I take in his musky scent that I’ve come to adore. I don’t try to think about how this looks to others. It doesn’t matter. I just want to comfort him and put this date back in a good mood.

  His big hands come to my back and hold me to him as he buries his face in my neck. “It’s okay; it feels good to talk about them. Everyone around me knows the story, so it’s kind of refreshing to share it with someone who doesn’t know.” He laughs. “Not so much for a romantic first date, though.”

  Take the next leap, K.C.

  “Oh, I don’t know. You managed to get me on your lap.” I run my hand over his head, bringing his face up to mine. I’ve never felt more sexually charged than I am with Chamberlain.

  “I’d really like to kiss you right now, Katie.”

  “Are you asking or warning me?” My hands rest on his strong shoulders because I don’t know where to put them.

  His answer is to press his lips tightly to mine while one of his hands moves to the back of my head to hold me to him. My back arches forward, my chest against the top of his. A gasp rasps out of me in surprise, allowing his tongue to glide into my mouth and against mine. A jagged sigh emits from me as I lose myself in his kiss. I follow his lead, batting my tongue and lapping it against his. My head naturally tilts to the side to give him a better angle.

  I keep my hands on his shoulders, rubbing my thumbs over the muscles bunched under his shirt. I’m a little startled when I feel something round and smooth and a metal click sounds against my teeth.

  His tongue is pierced! How is it possible I didn’t notice that before?

  Unfortunately, Chamberlain pulls back while taking my bottom lip with him. His gaze is hooded, and his breathing is shallow, compared to my heaving chest. “That was amazing,” he states after releasing my lip.

  “I …” I’m nervous; I don’t know what to say that won’t deter him.

  “It was, Katie. It was perfect.” He grabs my face and forces me to look at him. “Almost as if you were made to kiss me and only me.”

  My lips roll as I search through my vocabulary for the right words. “I’ve never …”

  A coy smile brightens his face, bringing out the dimple. “Oh, baby, you don’t know how happy that makes me.”

  He brings me closer for another kiss, but a clearing throat interrupts us. “Sir? Ma’am?” Do you mind? This is a family restaurant.”

  I feel my face turn as red as the waiter’s shirt as I quickly climb off Chamberlain’s lap and scoot back to my seat. “Sorry.” He glares and then leaves. Chamberlain grunts, and I watch him adjust himself, not hiding a thing. He doesn’t wear baggy clothes. His black Hanes shirt pulls tightly across his chest, and his blue jeans wrap around his massive thighs in a sexy, comfortable way. He has a hoodie hanging off the back of his seat along with his worn Red Socks’ hat.

  “Sorry, Katie. I didn’t want to get you in trouble.”

  “I should be the one apologizing.” I can’t keep my eyes from looking down at the table like I can see through it and through his jeans.

  “Up here, panda.” My eyes snap back up to him. “Your pizza is getting cold,” he mutters, going back to his own. I feel a little better when I notice the color in his cheeks.

  “Umm … how did you manage after your parents were gone?” I need to change the subject to cool us both down.

  Wow, this is crazy.

  I’m slowly starting to crave how he makes me feel.

  “I didn’t. I lived with Scott and his parents. Rose helped when she could, but I was lost for a while. My parents wanted me to go to college, but books and learning aren’t for me. I graduated high school, barely, joined a gym, and worked odd jobs. I was stupid for a while, but Scott helped me get my shit together.”

  “You’re a survivor,” I offer happily to him.

  “That I am.” He drops his pizza, and I still haven’t returned to mine. I haven’t even got through half of it, and I’m full. “So tell me about Tim.” He laces his fingers together and rests his chin on them.

  “Timothy,” I correct him. He hates being called Tim. “We were raised together. His father is one of our state representatives and a good friend of my father. There isn’t much to say. Timothy thinks he is perfect, thanks to his mother’s grooming, and I’m not. He delights in telling me so.”

  “Ass.”

  “Yes, he is rather displeasing to be around. It was always expected for us to get married. The date was set, location and honeymoon picked, and our first home bought and paid for, and he hadn’t even proposed to me yet. We never even dated; I just accompanied him to gatherings. I was to look beautiful and not be heard.”

  “I, for one, do think you are beautiful, breathtakingly so, but I like to hear you talk. Your voice is sweet and doesn’t carry a heavy Boston accent.”

  “Mother schooled it out of us.” I blush once more. “I don’t fit in with them. I think that now that I confronted them, they fully get it now. They won’t get me to change, and I’ll fight them if they do.”

  “So good old Tim is your ex now?”

  I shrug it off. “If you want to call him that? Sure. He is my sister’s problem now, thank goodness.”

  I pick at my own straw now, and it is a few minutes before Chamberlain speaks again. “You don’t swear, do you?”

  He is amused. “No, I don’t.” I hold up my hand to stop him. “And before you ask, no it doesn’t bother me that others do. I just never picked the habit up.”

  His dimple comes back out just as the waiter delivers the check. “I like that about you.” He puts a few bills into it and hands it back. “Keep the change.”

  He rounds the table and helps me up, his hand enveloping mine as we walk out. “This was a wonderful date, thank you.” I swing our linked hands.

  Chamberlain tugs on our hands, stopping me. “If you think that’s all I have, then I feel insulted, Katie.”

  “There’s more?”

  “Oh, yeah. We have calories to burn now And the method I would prefer to use isn’t going to happen between us, yet.” I shudder at the icy hot chills that race through my body. Every cell in my body starts to vibrate as I pick up on what he means.

  “What?” I breathe, and a small cloud forms between us from my exhale.

  He pulls me to him. “Not yet, Katie. I don’t want to scare you away.” He kisses my forehead, and I feel the heat remain as he draws back. “Ever been to the batting cages?”

  Wait! What? I thought we were talking about … oh, never mind!

  “N … no?” I regain my composure. “Mother was opposed to anything that had a ball that could hit us in the face and mess it up.

  “You’re shittin’ me?”

  “No.” I shake my head and frown. “Dance and music were safe, but that was it for us.”

  “Then let’s go.” He tugs me to my car. “Mind if we take your car? I got the impression that mine scared you.”

  “More the smell than the overall look,” I blurt out. My eyes widen as I realize what I said. “I mean …”

  “It’s okay.” He laughs and stops by my passenger door. “Mind if I drive?”

  “Not at all.” I stand there and wait.

  “Katie?”

  “Yes
?”

  “I need the keys, baby.”

  “Oh! Right.” I pull them out and hand them over.

  “Let’s go.” He makes sure I’m safely in the car before getting in. My car roars to life, and he pulls onto the street. A laugh bubbles up after he takes my hand again. “I never would have pictured myself driving a Volvo.”

  “I didn’t get to pick. I would have picked something else.”

  “Like?”

  “An SUV maybe? I’m just glad to have a car so I can go where I want.” I watch Boston zip past as we head to stage two of our date.

  Chapter Eleven

  “I’LL GO FIRST when we get to our cage so you can see how it’s done. If that’s okay with you?” Chamberlain grabs a couple of bats and helmets after paying for our time.

  “Sure.” I look around at the indoor batting place, whatever you call it. I can hear the sounds of machines throwing balls, bats hitting them, and faintly hear “Fire Burning” by Sean Kingston. My excitement is through the roof at getting to try something new. And with Chamberlain, no less!

  We talked about my schooling on the rest of the drive over here. I told him more about my parents and Zoey. I also told him about Fiona, who I hadn’t mentioned before. I shared that she is more of a mother to me than my own and is the reason I’m who I am now.

  We also talked about Scott; Chamberlain said he takes random classes all the time. He can never settle one a major, meaning Scott is no closer to a degree after three years of school than I am in my first year. Apparently, Scott is extremely smart but hates showing it, choosing to cover it with his humor and ego.

  “Okay, stand back here and watch. You’ll be safe from stray balls that way.” We arrive at an empty cage, and I take a seat on the bench while Chamberlain slips his hoodie and hat off. “I’m going to set the machine to its lowest setting so watch closely,” he explains and then walks over to get everything ready.